High-Tech Materials Alert

High-Tech Materials Alert reports developments in advanced materials, including new processes to create and manufacture them. Each issue keeps you informed of important new developments as they emerge from the laboratory towards commercialization, including advances in electronics and photonic materials, biomaterials, composites, ceramics, high-performance metals and alloys, novel polymers, diamond-like materials, and intermetallics. Our analysts go directly to the primary researchers themselves to find out what is in development and what is likely to have a significant commercial impact.

Each month, a special Market Forecast section thoroughly analyzes an individual advanced material or materials process. In addition to an expert forecast of growth rates, market demand, and market size, this section examines key factors such as supply and demand, obstacles to commercialization, existing and pending applications, and principle alternatives. High-Tech Materials Alert also includes a monthly Patent Review highlighting those patents with high commercial significance. With research occurring across a wide range of industries, High-Tech Materials Alert is the most efficient way to stay abreast of significant advances in materials and materials processes regardless of where they may originate.

Sample Briefing

CHEAPER CERAMIC MICRORODS FOR PIEZOCOMPOSITES BY HIP

It is now possible to make lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramic microrods for I-III piezoceramic devices by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) with silicon molds. This novel technology, referred to as lost Si mold process, is a marriage of silicon micromachining and ceramic sintering techniques. The result is piezoceramic microrods with high aspect ratios that are useful for making high-resolution micro-ultrasonic transducers.

The process starts by making a Si mold. This is done by making deep holes in designed shapes and sizes on a Si substrate using reactive ion etching. Then a PZT slurry is cast into the mold, and the PZT is subsequently sintered by HIP. Finally, the microrod array is released by selectively etching away the mold with XeF2 gas. This is in contrast to conventional lost plastic mold techniques that use X-ray synchrotron radiation, which requires large and expensive equipment. In addition, microrods made traditionally have unavoidable structure deformation when feature sizes are smaller than 20 micrometers because the mold must be removed prior to sintering.

The advanced lost Si mold process is the result of a team effort from three major materials processing groups at Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. The groups are the Venture Business Laboratory, which headed the project, the Materials Processing department, which contributed Silicon micromachining expertise, and the Materials Processing and New Industry Creation Hatchery Center, which offered its HIP expertise and experience. Together, they figured out how to drive PZT slurry into holes 10 micrometers in diameter and over 100 micrometers deep. This resulted in high-density microrods as fine as 7 micrometers square in diameter and 90 micrometers in height, with an aspect ratio higher than 15.

* The technology can be altered to make complex fine structures other than microrods, and at relatively low costs. PZT microrods can be used to construct high-resolution micro-ultrasonic transducers for ultrasonic imaging. Other applications include ultrasonic microscopes, piezoelectric actuators, and ink jets.

* The technology was funded in part by Japan's Society for the Promotion of Science and the Ministry of Science. It is patented by Olympus Optical Co. Ltd., and is currently under commercial exploration.

* Shinan Wang, one of the principle developers, has left Tohoku University to work at Toyota labs and can be reached there. His colleagues at Tohoku University are continuing PZT-related work.

Sample Weekly Table of Contents

* 5-AXIS LASER POWDER DEPOSITION FOR SOLID 3D METAL PARTS

* COMPUTER-CONTROLLED SLURRY DEPOSITION OF CERAMICS

* PRECISION HIGH-SPEED MACHINING WITH VIBRATION CONTROL

* PREDICT WARPAGE PERFORMANCE OF GAIM PARTS

* CHEAPER CERAMIC MICRORODS FOR PIEZOCOMPOSITES BY HIP

* ELECTRONIC NOSES READY FOR MANY ROLES

* SOME IMPORTANT PATENTS FOR YOU TO CHECK